Synergy
by True Discord
Summary: In fiction world, not all heroes are born with powers. Some of them earn theirs through heroic ventures and training. The others receive them through freak accidents. When Midoriya Izuku, the boy aspiring to become a hero, comes across the mysterious substance and bonds with it, his life takes a sudden turn. And not necessarily for the better.
1. Prologue

**I don't own Boku no Hero Academia or Symbiote/Reach Scarab concepts.  
**

 **First of all, I would like to thank everyone who took some time to check my first story. I hope you'll like it.**

 **And, beforehand, I would like to address a few concerns here:**

 **1) Yes, this is a Harem story. But I will try to do my best and not make it into one of the "bad" ones.**

 **2) There are changes to Canon so keep that in mind.**

* * *

 **Prologue: The Encounter  
**

* * *

 _What is your greatest fear, All Might, sir?_

The question has been repeating over and over inside Toshinori's head. It was just one of those simple interviews he had every once in a while but this particular question stuck to him like a glue and echoed louder and louder as he, along with the group of other heroes, entered the underground facility.

It has been years since he defeated All for One but his numerous bases were still out there. Scattered around Japan like the bombs ready to go off the moment someone touches them. A few weeks ago, a group of college students accidentally found the entrance to one of them through the abandoned factory basement. Approximately half and hour later, several ambulance cars arrived to get the injured people to the hospital.

Aside from numerous burns, wounds and deep cuts, all three were found in state of constant fear and shock. Even now, it was impossible to get more than one coherent sentence from them.

Walking down the dust-caked stairs, All might asked himself again what his greatest fear is. Failing his master's expectations? Not saving everyone he could? No, those were close but still not what he truly feared.

"Oi, All Might, move it!" Endeavour complained in his usual tone. Today he was supposed to start the training of Shouto. The boy finally manifested his Quirk and there was no way he would be allowed to waste any minute now. "The hell did they send all of us here for? If whatever thing hides here is similar to the other escapees, I along would enough to take care of them!"

"You really should whining that much, Todoroki." The man in his early twenties smirked at the fuming expression of No.2 hero. Shimura Tenko, otherwise known as the hero "Shigaraki", looked at All Might's back wondering what his mentor was thinking about. "But yeah, sending three top heroes here seems like a waste of time since most escapees were kind of weak."

"Shhhh," All might shushed both heroes before listening closely. They were walking through the corridors, only rats running under their feet. Out there, at the end of the corridor, there was some glow for a few brief moments. Something in his gut was telling him that this was exactly what they were looking for. "Let's go."

With each step, All Might felt the feeling of unease grow stronger in his heart.

It all felt far too familiar.

Slowly, he opened the door and shielded his eyes from the intense light his eyes had yet to adapt to. The room was vast and could have up to twenty people inside. Numerous computers, now broken or simply inactive, stood against the walls. The tables with empty beakers and flasks were covered in layers of dust and web. Across the floor were scattered sheets of paper with various data on them.

And in amidts this whole mess, one item was seemingly untouched by time.

All Might's eyes widened in shock. For several minutes, he just stood there staring at the all too familiar device that still haunted his nightmares.

In the middle of the room was the giant glass capsule with red ooze in it glowing brightly. The capsule itself looked far less worn out and didn't have even any dust on it. Was someone here before them? Or rather...

Did _he_ come here?

"What the hell is this thing?" Shigaraki traced his index and middle fingers across the thick glass. The ooze felt warm even through the material. He squinted his eyes, trying to see something besides the red substance. "Oi, Todoroki, you think we should call some of your people over here? It doesn't look like something you can or should fight anyways."

"You should learn to show some respect, brat." Endeavour chided, having already contacted his team of specialists. "On work, we use codenames if you haven't understood that yet."

"Yeah-yeah, I hear you." He shrugged off with a smirk before returning to study the capsule. He raised his eyebrow at the sudden motion inside it. "Guys, I think I just saw something move in there."

"What?" Endeavour asked with sligh irritation. One of the reasons why he disliked working with Shigaraki was because of how often he would let his imagination and assumptions overrule logic and actual observations. "If you are scared, you are always welcome to- The hell?"

All three turned back to look at the pod, the blood red ooze glowing wildly. Endeavour activated his flames. Shigaraki took off one of his gloves. And All Might took the fighting stance, ready to face whatever monster was about to attack them.

The container exploded, shooting glass in all directions. Using the diversion, the creature burst out and past the three heroes too fast to see what it even looked like. With undistinguishable noise, it escaped through the exit but didn't run too far before its tail were grabbed by none other than Endeavour.

"Oh no you don't!" He roared before setting the thing in his hands on fire. It screeched in agony but didn't succumb to pain and kept fighting against his grip. The fire user was, however, caught off guard when seeing the monster in light. It was the creature composed entirely of black slime. Its "eyes" and "mouth" seemed to be made out of the similar substance. "The hell...?"

"Hyaaaaaaah!" The thing used the opportunity to attack the hero and successfully wrapped itself against him, suffocating and crushing his body. The flames seemed to stop working and physical strength Endeavour had was simply not enough to break free. "Khanee... d... klho... bo... y... st!"

"Get away from him!" Shigaraki grabbed the sentient slime with both of his hands. Instantly, the ooze seemed to harden before turning to dust where the hero's hands were. Screeching, the creature released Endeavour before attempting to attack Shigaraki. But this time All Might blocked the attack and wrapped his massive arms around the creature. "Shit, what is that thing even made of?"

"Trsut me, Shimura," All Might whispered with pain evident in his voice. "If my guess is right, you are better of not knowing."

The creature cried again, growing more and more vicious. Turning its "head" 180 degrees around, it proceeded to try and force itself into All Might' throat and suffocate him. Reacting lightning fast, the Symbol of Peace bit the bullet, or the creature in this case, and its body fell limp. With a disgusted look, the hero spit the severed head out before seeing the equally disturbed expressions on his fellow heroes' faces.

"What?" He laughed in his booming voice. His coping technique. "I had to think fast and did the first thing that came to my mind."

The laughter soon died in his throat as the black wave of ooze towered over All Might and swallowed him and his fellow heroes inside.

The next thing they knew was the dark.

* * *

It has been hours since the creature escaped the facility. With the energy of the heroes drained and stored inside it, the sentient ooze had enough power to move around the city free. But it knew it wouldn't last for long.

Sooner or later, such methods would stop working and it would wither away. Of course, there still was some time-

No!

It wouldn't wait until the last moment.

It needed a _host_. And it needed one now. The problem now was finding the _proper_ one.

The heavy rain and the cold air didn't bother the creature as it searched through the streets. In this rain, the streets were filled with countless humans rushing to their homes and nobody paid attention to the small pile of black ooze lazily moving under their feet. There was barely shortage of some passable hosts .With just one moment of patience, it could attach itself to some unsuspecting man or woman and then enter their bodies.

But that just wouldn't cut it.

It needed and wanted to have the perfect host. When it was engineered by its creator, the man was planning to make him into the weapon only a handful of his closest allies could use. From the few tests on human subjects it experienced, the "improper" candidate would not just fail to bond with it but also cease to exist, becoming the part of the "ooze". And, what's more important, the existing creature would also suffer serious pain and possibly lose some of its functions and sentience.

In these circumstances, the creature couldn't afford any second chances.

The lightning struck, the light from it illuminating the streets for a split second. The sound of explosion caught the attention of the creature. What was that? Intrigued, the creature headed towards the dark alley where the noise came from. The only source of light was some lamp on the wall.

That was the moment when it found _him_.

The young man, the power emanating from him in all directions, stood at the end of the alley. His blood red eyes radiated the hunger. The hunger for power and recognition. Everything the creature craved for as well. In the wall in front of him, there was a huge dent caused by seemingly one simple strike. It could see the smoke escaping his palm. Did the boy do the damage this great with just one hand?

The creature grinned to itself gleefully.

It found itself a host!

"Yo, Deku," the creature slowly approached from behind. Now it was the second person, a boy of similar age but much more fragile build and weaker appearance. His back was pressed against the wall, the giant dent millimeters away from his head. His green eyes were trembling with fear. Pathetic, the creature remarked with disgust. "do you know why I did this?"

Izuku knew the answer perfectly. It all started rather stupidly. Kacchan was acting his usual arrogant self. Pushed him around. Mocked his dreams of becoming a hero. And then burnt his notebook to the crisp. The only difference from any other day was what Izuku did.

He tried to fight back. He felt the immense sense of satisfaction when his fist collided with Kacchan's face. It lasted for barely a few moments but, to Izuku, who suffered for years from Kacchan's bullying, these seconds lasted for hours. He wasn't fooling himself with delusions though. His punch was hardly anything to someone as strong as Kacchan. And he knew too damn well that once the classes were over, Kacchan would be waiting to have his revenge.

The smaller boy said nothing though, instead helplessly waiting for the blond to answer the question himself. "I am not doing this because you punched me." He said off-handedly. With the cold glare, he grabbed the teen by his collar and looked him straight in the eyes. "I did this because I wanted to remind you where you stand, Deku. Where you fucking belong."

Izuku grit his teeth. Why did he have to listen to all of this? Why did everyone repeat this over and over to him? Just why couldn't Kacchan let him live his life the way he wanted to? "You don't get to dictate me where I belong, Katsuki!"

Izuku's verbal defiance was cut short with one swift kick to his stomach. Curling into a fetal position, Izuku coughed harshly and fought against the tears that welled up in his eyes. Was this how he was going to live for the rest of his life? Bullied and pushed around by people like Kacchan? People who were just lucky to have their powers since birth?

With his teeth grinding against each other, Izuku raised his head to glare at Kacchan with all his hatred and disdain.

"Glare at me all you want, Deku," Bakugou said in nonchalant tone, although the hint of aggression was not lost on the green haired teenager. "You know that I am right. You, who was born Quirkless, will never stand equal to me. You'll never be a hero."

That one line made Izuku snap. With the furious roar, he launched himself at Bakugou aiming for his jaw. Who cared that, even if he hit him, the ash blond would then bat him senseless? Right now, all that Izuku wanted was to cause his former childhood friend the same pain with his fist as the former did with his words.

"You just don't get it, do you?" With a sigh, Bakugou proceeded to knee Izuku in his stomach before grabbing him by the wrist. With his feet firmly pressed into the ground, Bakugou used both of his hands to lift Izuku from the ground before throwing him against it without any concern.

 _Now's the chance!_ The black creature used the momentary distraction to throw itself at the blond's hand, effectively wrapping itself around it. But before it could even pierce through his skin even a little, the creature was clawed into and forcibly torn away. _No! Not now!_

"The fuck is it supposed to be?" Bakugou groaned with disgust, peeling off the black slime that jumped at him out of nowhere. Seeing that it just wasn't budging, he stretched his hand out before willing for the sweat on his forearm to explode violently. His ears must have played some stupid joke on him right now. He could swear, he heard the slime screech. "Tch."

The black substance fell off his arm and leaked on the ground next to Deku. How fitting.

"Keep in mind, Deku." The Explosion user said as he picked up his backpack and headed out of the alley. "No matter what, you'll always be a simple good for nothing."

And with these words, he was gone.

* * *

 _Unforgiveable!_

With its entire body aching and convulsing, the creature screeched in its mind. This brat actually dared to hurt it? That was unforgiveable!

 _I need to calm down..._ It quickly chided itself. The revenge against the arrogant brat was not his biggest concern right now. Whatever energy reserves it had from the three heroes, they all were practically depleted now thanks to the damage he took and needed to take care of. _I need to replenish them and I need to do it now!_

That was when its eyes fell on the boy lying near. He fainted from the amount of damage he took, or so it seemed. The kid looked terribly weak. His skin was pale and face was skinny. Judging by how sloppy his attempts at attack were, he was really bad with fighting as well.

 _Just great..._ The ooze complained to itself, slowly moving towards the unconscious teen. It wouldn't do this if it had any other choice. Sadly, that wasn't the case. _I need to take whatever energy I can from this brat and then find myself a proper host. Be grateful, brat, for getting the chance to serve as my meal._

The moment it touched its victim's hand, its eyes widened in shock. What was going on?

It didn't take any effort from the creature to be absorbed into the teen's skin. In fact, it was the opposite. It took extremely great effort from the creature to stay still as the teen's body seemed to pull the entire substance to itself. Its tendrils spreading all across the teen's body, from his feet to his head, the creature was screeching and moving wildly as more and more its body was being absorbed into this kid.

 _No! Why is this happening?!_

Soon, the entire body of the boy was covered in what appeared to be the black cocoon shaped like the human silhouette. Its mind was fading away into nothingness, the sentience it so desperately tried and wanted to keep being lost and absorbed into this person's mind. Its cries for control and pleas for his creator's help all but disappeared into the black as the rain stopped.

The black cocoon slowly opened, the ooze it was made of turning into tendrils and threads and whirling around the young man as he was slowly lifted on his feet by them. His feet now stood solidly on the ground and the black mass disappeared in his skin.

Slowly, the teen opened his eyes.

They glowed red.

* * *

 **So here's my wrap!  
**

 **As you see, I incorporated the Symbiote/Reach Scarab concept into the BNHA setting.**

 **Did you like it? Did you hate it?  
**

 **Tell me in your reviews!**

 **This is my first story so I am excited to hear your feedback.**


	2. Chapter 1

**I own neither BNHA nor any Marvel/DC characters and concepts.**

* * *

 **Guys, thank you all for your reviews!**

 **Seriously, it's really touching how much support my first story got! I just don't know how to express it, honestly! Hope you will like this chapter and see its length and quality as a worthy "thank you"!**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: The Awakening**

* * *

"Argh..."

 _Wow, I sure took my time lying here, huh._ Izuku chuckled dryly. It was almost midnight when Izuku regained his consciousness, lying in the alley in his soaked from rain uniform. Aching all over from the beating at his former friend's hands, the green haired teen was slowly making his way back home, his school bag hanging loosely on his shoulder. _Man, Kacchan surely didn't hold any punches today... I feel like I am about to collapse any second now._

Not that he wasn't used to those punches though. Internally, Izuku sighed. It was sad what their relationships have turned into over the years. There was time when Izuku could consider Kacchan his best and probably the only friend. Someone he always wanted to stand side by side with. Somebody he knew he could trust with anything.

And now?

Now, despite the respect for his power and determination being still strong in his heart, Izuku couldn't help but hate Kacchan more and more with every day passing. It was on the days like this when Izuku reminded himself of the lesson he learnt at the tender age of four:

 _Nobody is born equal._

If someone told you otherwise, then they lied.

Men were not born equal. Even before the Quirks appeared, the equality among men was nothing but the idealistic but highly unrealistic concept. There were just too many things that affected people right from their birth. The easiest example would be their bodies. Lots of babies are brought into this world healthy and ready to live. Some are born weaker, with certain health problems emerging only later in their lives. And finally, there are those who will never be able to do what the others can.

Then, there are things like money and power the person is brought into. There were decent and noble people who would work day and night to provide even the most basic things for their struggling families. Unlike them, some people were born and destined to live in luxury with no fear of hunger or poverty in their hearts. And then there were those who lied, cheated and blackmailed their way to the top, laughing at the efforts of those beneath them.

 _Life wasn't fair._

Not before, and definitely not now.

There was a reason why Izuku, while not being one to envy the others, despised people like Kacchan. Kacchan was _lucky._ Right from the moment of his birth, he was just lucky to possess the Quirk as powerful as his. He didn't work to earn it. And he surely did little to prove he deserved it.

And, sadly, there were many people similar to Kacchan. Those who never ever understood how lucky they were, simply enjoying their gifts while thinking themselves superior to those born people would grow up to attend some hero schools, get their licenses and become heroes. Some of them had their dreams come true, but most of them just saw superhero career as nothing more than a job.

As if it was some cruel joke of the fate, his entire class consisted of people who all were born with Quirks. Some flashy and quite powerful, some quite weird and barely useful. But Quirks nonetheless. With someone like Izuku, the example of the plainest of them all, being around, every Quirk seemed like something grand. That made him a social outcast. The target of their pranks and ridicule.

But why?

Just because he wasn't lucky enough to be born even with some small and weak Quirk? If he were born that way, would he be accepted as their equal? Would he not go through the constant reminder of how powerless he is every single day?

Sadly, he had no way to find out.

With a sigh, Izuku looked up at the night sky. The stars, scattered all across the black fabric of the sky, were shining dimly and peacefully. The air after the rain was soothingly fresh and calming. Most people on the streets were also quite relaxed. Office workers walking in half-drunken states after some not so brief visit to local bars. Young adults coming back from some crazy party or just a simple study session at their friend's home. And et cetera, et cetera.

The peace this night was providing was to Izuku like the water for the man dying of thirst.

 _I guess, the worst is behind me for today._ Izuku thought with a light chuckle. Maybe, it was really all that he had to go through for today. Try to stand up to his long-time tormentor. Get the crap beat out of him. Have another 'refreshing' reminder of how powerless he was, in comparison to the others. And waking up in the alley with his clothes wet and dirty from the rain. _Seriously, what else could make this day worse?_

Suddenly, he felt someone roughly grab him by the shoulder. Gulping, the green haired teen cursed under his breath.

 _Me and my big mouth..._ Izuku cursed silently. Why was he tempting fate?

Turning around, Izuku gulped as he looked at the guys in front of him. Two guys, judging by the looks, no more than three years older than Izuku was.

The one who stopped him - the lanky guy dressed in simple black jeans and grey sweatshirt - smiled at him in fake manner. His friend - the bulky guy with rough features and piercing in his nose - said nothing instead glaring at the people who passed them. Just great…

"You think you could help me and my friend out with some cash?"

Izuku bit his lip nervously. Not that he had much in his wallet today (he wasn't the type to carry lots of cash unless he needed it for something). It was just how easy he reached for his wallet. How much he grew used to being treated like this. How being pathetic was a normality for him.

 _I guess, it is not just the lack of Quirk that makes me Deku…_ Izuku added bitterly. If he was so weak, then would the Quirk really help him? Or would he be just as spineless as he is now? With a sigh, he reached inside his pocket to get his wallet while the mugger was thanking him for the "help" in the mocking tone. _Oh no..._

"I-I don't have any money on me..." Izuku mumbled after searching pockets in both his jacket and pants. He must have lost his wallet in that alley! Damn it. Shaking and paling, Izuku turned to the couple of guys and gulped. "S-Sorry?"

It was hard to miss how the friendly facade was instantly dropped and the lanky guy's eyes sharpened. He was annoyed with his answer, no doubt. And there was little doubt they would just let it slide. After all, why would they?

 _I need to run before this gets dangerous..._ Izuku mumbled out another awkward and quiet apology before attempting to flee. However, this attempt was thwarted when one of the guys grabbed him by the collar and dragged him into the alley. The scene from before replayed as Izuku was once again slammed against the wall with the lanky guy looking into his eyes. _Oh fuck... I am so screwed._

"You think that's nice pranking people like that, kid?" He asked with strong edge. Praning? Izuku chuckled at the world. As if he had enough nerve to do that to people like this. The green haired teen took a look at the hand that was pressed into the wall near him. Judging by the way the bricks were turning into hot mess, the guy has quite potent melting Quirk.

Joy.

Just his luck.

"W-Wait!" Izuku raised his hands in defense, hoping to reason with the muggers in front of him. Maybe he could reason with them? "I-I just dropped my wallet. It's not far from here. If you just let me go get it, I swear, I'll give you what you-"

Izuku didn't get to finish as the bulky guy slammed his fist into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Grasping for air, Izuku dropped to his knees and gritted his teeth in pain.

"Thanks, man. This kid's rumbling was getting on my nerves." Letting out a small laugh, the lanky guy looked down at Izuku who was still kneeling on the ground. Grabbing him by the bush of green hair, the thug made Izuku look him in the eyes. "Look, kid, if you think we are just gonna let you go after you lied to us like that, then you really need some good lesson of manners, don't you think so?"

"B-But I-"

"Don't interrupt me when I am talking!" The lanky guy snapped, slamming Izuku's head into the brick wall. As Izuku curled into a ball on the ground, he and his partner just snickered. Well, if not money, they might just enjoy some recreational beating. "Let's start with some basic rules, shall we?"

"P-Pl ** _eas_** e... Just ** _le_** t m ** _e g_** o..." Both guys blinked at how weird the kid's voice sounded. Something between the pathetic whimper and actual growl. Pfft, did the kid try to scare them or beg his way out? Never mind that, both guys shrugged and started the "session". As Izuku kept begging to be let go, both guys kept punching and kicking his body.

Completely oblivious to the changes in Izuku's body. The black substance started lazily forming on his skin out of nowhere, connecting into thin lines with each other. Slowly growing thicker and more pronounced. Covering the boy in itself.

 _W-What's happening to me...?_ His body felt like it was lit on fire. His insides twisting and burning nonstop. Izuku's vision became blurry as his heartbeat accelerated. It became hard to breath as the unknown substance started covering his skin and mouth, cutting off the oxygen. Damn it! He was going to die this way!

Just one second to concentrate is all he wanted. One moment to catch his breath. But the ongoing assault made it too hard to even look up from the ground. _If only these guys got away..._

The small tendrils grew and grew. The black mass was now covering his entire body underneath the clothes.

 _I just want to..._

The white dots and lines appeared on Izuku's now covered face, forming "eyes" of some sort. Izuku tried to breathe and the area above his mouth tore open, small tears forming the "mouth".

 _Please... I beg you... Just..._

 **"Leave ME ALONE!"**

Both guys looked in shock as the mass of black slime formed around the teen before bursting right at them. The attack was surprisingly strong and pushed them back without any problem.

With some distance between them, the two took a look at the teen's appearance. The weird black stuff was slowly oozing out of his clothes and covering them like the colony of snakes. His arms, which were already hidden behind the unknown constantly moving substance up to the elbows, had four claw-like extensions instead of hands.

"W-Wha-... **What's this?** " His voice sounded like two speaking at once. The one being his meek and small tone while the other one was slightly more gruff. What disturbed more was that the kid in front of them now looked like an alien of some kind.

The lanky one cursed under his breath. The shit was getting out of control. His eyes sharpened as the steam started coming from his palm. His partner activated his Quirk and his hands transformed into massive hammers. The attack from before was nothing more than an ordinary defensive reflex. And yet he already felt how powerful this Quirk was. He sure as hell didn't want to find out what else this Quirk did.

 _No more Nice Guy for you, brat!_ The mugger thought as he rushed towards Izuku, ready to melt the fucker's face right off. The teen was too late to react and the mugger grinned as he felt the substance under his palm boil and burn. The sizzling sound and the cry of the kid completely calmed his nerves down. Why was he even worried in the first place? The little fucker didn't know a thing about fighting!

Suddenly, the sizzling stopped.

"Hey, what is the-Shit! Let go! Let go of my hand, you fucker!" The guy cursed as the black mass swallowed his hand, somehow negating his ability. The slime just kept growing on him, covering more and more of his hand. The fuck was the little shit trying to pull off? "The fuck are you doing, you retard?!

 _B-But..._ Izuku thought in panic, looking at the man through the "eyes" of the mask he now had. This all felt like some dream. Seeing and hearing everything. But not being in control. _I am not doing anything..._

"You better not try anything fu-Gyaaaah!"

The bulky guy's eyes widened in shock as he saw the kid grab Natsuji's hand and twist it with no problem. Like turning the doorknob, really. The sickening sound of bones crushing and flesh twisting filled the air for a few moments before his partner fell on the ground clutching his hand.

"Don't just there, Makise! Kill the little fucker!" Natsuji yelled to him, having examined his wrist. Whatever damage was done, he sure looked pissed off.

Following the orders, the hammer-handed guy proceeded to deal with the punk, ready to crush him with his "fists". The kid could do something but he definitely couldn't handle his punches.

 _Oh no!_ Izuku gasped behind the mask. This hit was certainly going to kill him! His entire body, now covered by the still unidentified mass, refused to move for even an inch. _Damn it! Come on! Come on! Move it!_

"Payback time!" He roared out, ready to finish the kid off with one quick punch.

 _I said... **Fucking move, damn it!**_

As his inner voice grew just as distorted as the one he spoke before, the slime-covered teen seemingly disappeared right in front of his eyes. It was too fast for his eyes to catch.

Natsuji rose back on his feet, still clutching hand but ready to fight nevertheless. Both thugs spent a few seconds searching for the little fucker that was definitely not coming back home with just a few bruises. Oh, they were going to beat him until he couldn't even stand up without crying from pain!

Unknown to them, Izuku _already_ was going through something similar. Whatever this substance was, it didn't just stop at his skin. As thousands if not millions small needles and tendrils of slime started slowly working their way through his flesh and to his very nerves, Izuku rolled his eyes in intense agony. For the first few minutes of the torturous transformation, he couldn't even speak from sheer amount of overwhelming pain.

 _Nononono!_ Izuku never felt anything like this before. He felt his bones shattering into million pieces. His blood boiling and evaporating right in his veins. His muscles burning and being torn apart. His very nerves twisting and snapping. For the next five minutes, which felt like hours to Izuku, there was nothing but endless pain. _Stop it! Oh God, please! Stop-_

And then...

... it all came to an end.

 ** _"GyaaahahayaAAAA!"_** The sudden scream, which effectively shattered all the light bulbs nearby, drew their attention to the furthest end of the alley. They could see something move there. Was it a hero? Or even worse, an actual villain? No, that definitely wasn't it. In the dark of the night, it was hard to see what the person looked like. "Ha... _huff..._ Haaa..."

All of a sudden, the lightning struck, illuminating the area for a brief moment. But that was more than enough to shiver the chill down the muggers' spines as they looked at the creature in front of them.

The black slime stretched over his skinny body like the second skin. Several spiky tendrils were still moving around in the air as if they were alive, ready to pierce and kill anyone in their way. His hands now spotted five long blade-like claws for fingers. Three toes on his feet had shorter but still deadly looking talons. And his face...

White triangular eyes with no pupils stared examined stared at them with no clear emotion behind it. The creature opened his mouth, revealing the black razor-sharp teeth, the emerald green tongue rolling out and licking the blades of his mouth. With another loud cry, it seemingly calmed down and just stared at its own hands.

"The hell is this thing?"

 _What..._ Izuku thought as he looked up from his hands and at the shocked expressions of the guys. Unfortunately, neither stayed shocked for long and soon Natsuji, if Izuku remembered his name correctly, charged at Izuku with his healthy arm in an attempt to hit him. This time however, everything was different. _Is it me? Or is he moving slower?_

It was really weird. Watching someone move like in some slow motion sequence. Izuku stepped out of the lanky guy's way just in time for his palm to slam into the wall behind. Following some unknown instinct, Izuku used the opportunity to grab him by the collar before throwing him with all his strength.

Which, apparently, increased much more than he expected.

"Wooooooh!" The guy screamed in shock, literally flying out of the alley and right into the building on the opposite side of the street. The force of the impact was enough to make a large dent in the wall. Judging by how his body instantly went limp, Natsuji most probably lost consciousness and wouldn't wake up for some time. His partner, however, was up and ready to continue.

 _For now..._ Izuku noted quite darkly, surprising himself. Since when did he think like this? Was it all the rush of adrenaline? Or- His train of thought was interrupted as the guy's Hammer Fist almost squashed his head into meaty mess. Dodging and jumping back, Izuku scolded himself. How could he get carried away like this when his life was in danger? _I'll think about this later!_

"Time to sleep, brat!" The thug raised both hands in some boxing stance, ready to go all out against him. He was moving much faster than his partner and clearly had way more experience with fighting. His moves were swift, precise and, surprisingly, well calculated. And if it were not for some sort of sixth sense that helped him dodge all the punches, he sure would be down in a matter of seconds. Due to his overly analytical nature, Izuku didn't notice the latter until he was cornered into the end of the alley. "No more running now!"

 **"Do I look like I want to?!"** Izuku retorted rather lamely, although unsure of what exactly he was going to do. He was cornered. The only way out was blocked by the guy in front of him. And he still had no idea what exactly he could do besides moving faster. The only thing he could imagine was taking the guy on with brute strength. But that was way too risky. What if his strength didn't increase? He would end up with both hands broken beyond repair! _Not like I have any choice. If only..._

Suddenly, the idea popped in Izuku's mind. That thing that he did at the start of his transformation! What if he tried to do it again? Would it work? There was only so little time before he was beaten with the Hammer Fists but he still had to try.

 _Here goes nothing!_ Izuku thought as he cut the distance between the guy and himself, pressing his palms into the thug's chest. He felt the black mass move rapidly at the area he pressed against. He kept it small all the while making it larger and larger inside the little blob in order to increase the pressure. Finally, his weapon was ready.

"Get away!" While this certainly was not the bravest or coolest thing to say, Izuku couldn't help but feel the great deal of self-satisfaction as the guy was pushed back by the stream of the black slime. As he watched the guy desperately struggle to get the substance off himself, Izuku felt another emotion appear in his eyes narrowed behind the mask, the dark thoughts filling his head.

These two... They were just like Kacchan and the others in school. They looked down on him just because he was weaker. Just because he couldn't do what they could, they treat him like he was nothing. Just because he was Quirkless... Just because he was powerless.

 _But not anymore..._ As the slime started slowly peeling itself away from the heavily breathing thug and moving towards the teen's feet, Izuku slowly approached him with these dark thoughts. Looking into the eyes of the guy in front of him, Izuku couldn't help but smirk. All muscles and tough upfront but for what? What his Hammer Fists mattered if he was shaking like a scared cat right now? _Maybe I should teach **them** some manners... Yes... **That would certainly be fun!**_

... No.

 _What am I even thinking about?_ Izuku shook his head, surprising the thug. That wasn't right. Whatever happened, he couldn't just use his power to get back at these guys. If he did, then he would be no better if not worse than these guys.

"Go." Izuku whispered quietly as the slime slowly peeled off from his face and blades on his hands revert back into fingers. Not wanting to wait until the teen changed his mind, Makise hurried to grab his friend and get away from here. As the sounds of running got quieter and quieter, Izuku felt the rest of the black mass move and crawl all over his skin.

Looking at his hand, Izuku saw the material seemingly absorb into his skin but before he could even form any idea of what was happening he fell on his knees and then just laid down on the ground. Izuku felt his body grow heavy and numb. The world in his blurred and darkened. The figure appeared on the other end of the alley but he couldn't see who it was.

As his consciousness started to slowly slip away, Izuku could only helplessly lie there listening to the approaching steps. Was it one of those two? Did they return to finish him off? Or was it a police officer who wanted to arrest him for the use of Quirk without license?

Honestly, Izuku couldn't care less about any of these.

He closed his eyes and mentally prepared for the worst once he opened them again.

* * *

Inside one of the numerous skyscrapers in Tokyo, there was an underground laboratory facility hidden from the eyes of police and heroes alike. If there was something undoubtedly great about the way today's system worked, it is how easy keeping things secret for big corporations like hers has become.

While all the spandex-clad heroes were out there fighting another giant purse snatcher or smiled in front of the cameras after stopping a mundane bank robbery, people like her could work on something indeed groundbreaking. Something that would definitely put all the so-called villains to shame.

Sorano Hikari, the woman in her early forties with short brown hair and bright yellow eyes, was, by no means, a villain of course. At least, she didn't see herself as one.

Every single morning, when she looked at her reflection in the mirror, she didn't see the woman who could dissect a living human without batting an eye if it were for the sake of her research. She didn't see a deranged sociopath so many of her imprisoned colleagues were labelled by the media. What she saw was her real self.

The woman who wouldn't let some vague ethical concepts stop her from driving humanity to its true potential.

And one of her earlier attempts couldn't turn up any more conveniently.

Sitting at her desk, Sorano looked through the files her associates sent her no more than a few minutes ago. Ah, what nostalgia. Memories from the past instantly resurfaced with perfect accuracy as she looked at the samples their inside men in the police department managed to get their hands on. While her colleagues were obviously beyond themselves that one of their old bases was found by none other than All Might and the other top heroes, she was probably the only who was actually intrigued by the situation.

Unlike most of her fellow scientists, she was no stranger to some fun in the research. While it was truly satisfying to watch everything go according to your calculations and plans, some little surprises like this were the only thing that made the whole process more exciting. And given the nature of the object the heroes found, she couldn't feel any more intrigued.

 **|Project "Synergy"|**

The weapon that could turn the tides of war between heroes and villains. One of their most ambitious attempts to enhance their forces beyond the wildest dreams. This project…

…was the only and, possibly, the biggest failure.

Countless hours research and experimentation.

Millions of dollars.

Numerous human lives.

All of that had gone to waste as all test subjects died one after another.

Every suggested solution failed miserably.

Every new theory contradicted thousands of the ones they created prior.

Every single step forward made them take three steps back.

All of that was useless.

Frustrated and disappointed with the results, she, along with the rest of the team, has long since given up on it and decided to move on to much more important tasks than this. Without much regret, they let the substance rot until the end of times. Little to no desire to ever hear of it again.

But it seems that there was some value to the creature after all.

 _Given **his** condition, retrieving it might become one of our priorities. _Sorano thought with a heavy sigh. Closing the windows, the woman in white lab coat accessed the cameras in one of the containment cells she had throughout the building.

On the other side of the screen, there was the container with a human body floating in crystal blue liquid. Although, to be quite honest, it was hard to consider the slab of meat inside the pod a "human" body. Entire limbs missing. Scar tissue covering most if not all the skin. Numerous wounds and holes inside whatever was left of the torso. And the skull with skin stretched all over it instead of a head.

And this is what the man who once made the entire country grovel at his feet by his mere existence had been reduced to. The leftovers of the powerful man he once was. To see the person of such great potential stuck between life and death in that miserable form for years was nothing if heart-wrecking.

"Computer, access the file number 616." She whispered, her eyes still focused on the pod and the man inside. Was the project finally what it was supposed to be from the start? Or did it evolve on its own over the years feeding on whatever leftover chemicals the facility had in storage? Either way, her interest was certainly picked.

"Hello?" She whispered into her headphone after dialing all too familiar number. Her lips curled into calm smile. The person on the other end of the line was someone she could trust with the task as important as this. Someone who never failed to deliver her the results. "I would like to hire you for another job."

It didn't take long to discuss all the details. Sorano was, after all, one of his best clients. Hanging up, the scientist smirked to herself.

May the God help whoever found her little project.

He or she would definitely need it.

* * *

 _Izuku opened his eyes, the gentle spring breeze touching his sun was shining brightly and Izuku wondered if this was just a dream. The sound of children laughing caught his ears and Izuku turned around. Almost, the green haired teen recognized the place._

 _'How did I get here?' Izuku asked himself walking among the trees. It was the forest he and Kacchan used to play around in. The same place where their relationships deteriorated completely._

 _Why was he dreaming about this place of all things?_

 _"Forward march, members of Bakugou Hero Agency!"_

 _What the-! Izuku's eyes widened at the familiar voice singing in the commanding voice. Following the sound of splashing, Izuku slowly made his way through the , he was near the river where it all changed between Kacchan and him._

 _It couldn't be..._

 _"Oh, he fell!"_

 _"Hey, are you okay?"_

 _"He's fine. Kacchan is really strong!"_

 _Even if it was a dream, why was he dreaming about this?_

 _Izuku saw his younger self quickly get down to the river, all the while looking concerned and scared. A part of him wanted to reach out for the kid and stop him. To prevent his past self from doing what he did._

 _But it was just memory. Nothing that he did here would change the present._

 _All he could do was just watch._

 _"Can you stand up?" He saw his younger self extend his arm for Kacchan to grab. "It would be bad if you hit your head!"_

 _What followed next was something Izuku desperately tried to forget._

 _"Get away from me!" The rest of the group watched in shock as Bakugou pushed Deku away, making him fall into water. As the green haired kid rose back, coughing and gasping, he turned his head up to see the pair of bloody red eyes glaring at him with such fury and anger that he couldn't do anything but wait in silence. "Deku, you..."_

 _"K-Kacchan, w-what is wrong?" Midoriya was confused. What did he do? Why was Kacchan so angry with him? "P-Please, let me help yo-!"_

 _"Shut up!" The blonde haired yelled, his hands emitting black smoke. Why did someone as useless as Deku try to help him? Why would he need his help at all? He was Bakugou Katsuki! He needed nobody's help or concern! "I didn't need your damn help, Deku! So just screw off!"_

 _"B-But-" Another attempt at arguing was the last straw for Bakugou. He never was angrier than now. And he sure as hell was going to show it. The kids on the log watched with their eyes wide open as Bakugou made his biggest explosion yet. The sound of it was enough to scare all the birds nearby into flying away. Once the smoke cleared out, they could see the giant hole a few centimeters away from Izuku's shaking form._

 _"Remember, Deku," whatever was left of Kacchan's old self was gone. No more innocence in his features. No more excitement in his eyes. There was only hatred and pride. "you will always be just a Quirkless waste of space. So never get in my way again... Next time I won't miss, you hear me?!"_

 _Inches away from breaking into tears, Midoriya only nodded shaking. That was enough for Bakugou as he climbed back to the ground and joined the group of the other kids as their rightful leader. Not even sparing him another glance, Bakugou left with the others following him._

 _He was once again all alone._

 _"Hey there," Izuku slowly approached his past self, who standing with his back facing the teen. "are you okay?"_

 _Izuku expected his past self to freak out or scream in fear or even faint. But he certainly didn't expect what came next._

 _"Why am I so pathetic?" Midoriya spoke in quiet and whimpering voice, echoing throughout the suddenly quiet place. As the boy turned around, Izuku saw tears streaming down his face without control. Seeing his past self like this... Izuku gulped as the boy cupped his face and started crying. "No matter what I do...! I always will be just Deku, won't I? Kacchan is right... My dreams of becoming a hero... They are nothing but delusions... I probably should just give up..."_

 _As the sounds of sobbing and sniffing filled the place, Izuku gulped and looked at his shaking form. It was just a dream. As soon as he woke up, none of this would matter in the real world._

 _But that didn't mean he didn't need to say anything._

 _"T-That's not true..." Izuku was taken aback as the kid suddenly looked up at him, waiting for the answer. It was especially hard since Izuku still felt like this himself. He was Quirkless. Just a 'normal' person in the age of "Wonders". How could he even hope to feel himself equal to even the weakest of his classmates? The silence was maddening and Izuku, with a heavy sigh, decided to give this a shot. "I know that the way things are going for us now simply sucks... Even if we try harder than anyone else in our class, we are still behind them. Even if I am lucky enough to get into Yuuei, I will probably be the dead last there as well... But I know everything will be alright."_

 _His younger self blinked, confused by how such situation could be made better._

 _"I know that I may not become the top hero... Or even make it into the big leagues. I know that, even if I become a hero, I will never be famous for saving hundreds of people even if I dedicate every single day of my hero career to it. But that doesn't bother me for one simple reason." Izuku smiled gently at his past self before continuing with confident smile." Because as long as I can help people, no matter how little or insignificant it will be, I will always be there. And I will always be happy doing my work as a hero!"_

 _"... Pfft. S **o... That's your motivation? That's your aspiration?"** His younger self chuckled dryly, the whites of his eyes turning black. The tears, that previously dropped on the ground, turned black and soon started to move and spread the black across the grass and land. With the black consuming all around, Midoriya looked at Izuku with the mixture of different emotions. Curiosity. Amusement. Disdain and... Pity? **"Spend the rest of your life as a nobody and ubject yourself to humiliation and ridicule every single day just to live out your childhood dream? Damn... And here I thought I couldn't fall any lower."**_

 _"W-What do you mean?" Izuku asked as he nervously looked around. The forest, previously green and flourishing, was now grey and barren. All sounds died in here as well. The ground under their feet was dry and sandy. The nearby river turned black and looked ominous. "... Is this some kind of nightmare?"_

 ** _"Oh, that's something much worse, I assure you."_** _His past self chuckled sickeningly, his voice sounding like two voices spoke simultaneously. As the black liquid started covering more and more of his younger self, Izuku took one step back._

 _Suddenly, he felt his feet sink into the ground as everything around them turned black and lifeless. The teen tried to grab onto something but the black hand shot out of nowhere and wrapped itself around his wrist. He tried to rip it away but it was too hard to even tear a tiniest hole in. Then another black limb grew from underneath him and pulled him down to the ground. Numerous black straps coiled around him, tying the teen to the ground. With his face pressed hard against the cold black liquid, Izuku looked up at his counterpart._

 _His eyes widened at the new form of his past self._ _Or whatever that thing was now..._

 _It looked humanoid at best and monstrous at worst. Towering over him like the giant wave, the monster's body was pure black with some white lines chaotically placed all across its flesh. It had no limbs besides the numerous tendrils coiling and moving from its body like snakes. The head of the creature had no distinguishable features besides its rows of giant razor sharp teeth and white eyes._

 ** _"Deku, huh..."_** _The monster spoke once again, his voice mocking and patronizing. The black substance around Izuku started to shift and move chaotically. Then, without any warning, the green haired teen was all but launched up until he stood face to face with the monster. His eyes narrowed in disdain and hatred. **"That name fits you perfectly. Nothing but some childish ambitions with no strength to achieve them. No, even worse. With no backbone to try and fight for those!"**_

 _"T-That's not true!" Izuku tried to defend himself but the monster only sneered at his response._

 ** _"Oh really?"_** _Another dry chuckle escaped the monster's mouth. **"We both know that it is not true... You may pretend you are giving it your all to become a hero but... You never trained your body. You never stand up to your tormentors. You never even once tried to do anything to change yourself. Instead, you just took it and hoped that some miracle would happen and bestow the power upon you! For someone who claims to try harder than everyone else, your efforts are just pathetic."**_

 _"Shut up!" Izuku yelled in rage. Why, even in his own dreams, he couldn't hear the end of this? Just why?_

 ** _"Or are you trying to escape reality like this? Face failure after failure and keep telling yourself that you can be a hero?"_**

 _"Enough..."_

 ** _"Just admit it, Midoriya Izuku, deep down inside, you know that your dreams are impossible! You should have accepted that long time ago! "_**

 _"Please... Just stop!"_

 ** _"Everyone is right about you!"_** _The monster roared out, the rage and sadism boiling in his voice. Each and every word was meant to destroy Izuku. His spirit. His will to fight for the dream he so desperately wanted to achieve. Inwardly, the creature smiled to itself. Just a bit more. Just a few soul-crushing words and he would be free. **"You are nothing! And you will always stay nothing! So just admit it! You can never become a hero!"**_

 _The silence followed, feeding the monster's growing pride at his actions. Be as it may, there was little to no work when it came to crushing the spirit of a person as weak and meek as this one. Now... The first thing to do was-_

-CRACK-

 ** _"What the..."_** _The creature looked up at the black sky. His eyes widened at the sight of small but numerous cracks in it. No, that wasn't was going on?"_

 _"... You think you are the first one to tell me all of this?" The monster's attention was drawn back to the teenager. There was something different about him. Something that made the creature uneasy. "You think I am delusional enough to think that I can become like All Might without some powerful Quirk?! You think I never tried to change the way the others see me? You think I like taking all the insults and pranks and them walk away?! Well, guess what, you are wrong!"_

 _Izuku glared at the monster, tears threatening to escape his eyes. Why the monster was silent, Izuku didn't know. And neither he cared. All he wanted right now was to give him the piece of his mind._

 _"I tried and tried but it never worked!" Izuku admitted bitterly. He accepted his own powerlessness a long time ago. And realized it even earlier. "No matter how many times I put up a fight, Kacchan and his friends always beat me with no effort! But I guess I am just too stubborn because I cannot stay out of trouble with them for long!" Izuku said as the memory of Kacchan beating him today resurfaced in his memory._

 _The monster's eyes narrowed. What the hell was that kid trying to pull off? Another cracking sound reached him, alarming the monster of the continuing resistance. No... It couldn't be. The good for nothing here just couldn't have that much of willpower! It was impossible!_

 _"You wanna stomp on my dreams? Want to make me feel like a loser? Regret all my fifteen years of life? Then get in the fucking line!"_

 _Every single day of his life he dedicated to his dream. And every single day he was reminded of how unrealistic it was. There was just no end to it! And now, all these years of frustration and suppressed anger were coming out!_

 _Running in his blood along with the power he had no idea he now possessed._

 _"I went through too much shit to care about ANYONE telling me I can't be a hero!" The monster's eyes widened as it watched the black substance whirl around the teen, bending itself to his will. He tried to regain control but found it impossible! As the darkness of the world around kept weakening with every passing moment, the monster looked down at Izuku. This little pest... "That's why, even if I am nothing but a Quirkless weakling, I won't give up on my dream... I will fight with all I got..."_

 _He needed to stop him! The monster roared a battle cry of despair and determination as he transformed into one giant stream of black. The attack, both strength and speed of which would be enough to pierce through the mountains, was heading heads on towards Izuku. It might have seemed as an overkill but it was worth it if it killed the brat right here and right now. If he didn't take control now, God knows when another chance would present itself!_

 _"And I... I will...!"_

 _His entire body was burning with the sudden surge of power. Where did it come from? What did it mean? None of that mattered to him right now. As he followed the unknown instinct, Izuku launched himself high into the air, right towards the incoming attack. He drew his fist back, the veins in his hand becoming black and red. He would never back down! He was ready to face whatever danger that stood on his way!_

 _He would certainly..._

 ** _"become a hero!"_**

 _His fist clashed with the spear of black._

 _And then the entire world fell apart._

* * *

 **And that's my wrap!  
**

 **The darkness is dead! Or is it?**

 **Only one way to find out!**

 **Now, I am not entirely sure on how I feel about the chapter. On the one hand, I feel like I really rushed things here. Like, seriously rushed. One the other hand, however, I am pretty sure everyone pretty much expected some kind of internal battle occur and I really didn't want to drag it on with cliches.**

 **Also, I wanted to use this chapter to show a few things about Midoriya I strongly believe in. I like his innocence and that he is cinnamon roll, but sometimes people forget about things like him getting angry or admitting that he used to despise people with Quirks. I just wanted to expand a bit on it.**

 **So, that's my wrap! I would like to get your feedback in reviews!**

 **Till next chapter, folks!**


	3. Chapter 2

_I don't own Boku No Hero Academia._

 _Neither do I own DC and Marvel._

* * *

 **Guys, thank you all for your support! I am really happy you are so supportive. I am really happy that all of you liked what has been written so far.**

 **That being said, guys, I think there is something I need to clarify. Some of the readers sent me PM asking about harem and whatnot. So, I think we need to talk a bit about this little detail.**

 **If you think that, at the end of the story, Izuku will be dating severl girls simultaneously, then I apologize but that is not happening.  
**

 **I used to enjoy the stories where the protagonist ends up with several girls. But over the time, stories like those just became weird for me to read. Don't take wrong, I still love a good harem story. But not when the protagonist ends up with a bunch of women who are surprisingly okay with the whole thing.** **So, when I warned you that it is going to be a harem, I had in mind the way harem manga works. There are several love interests for the protagonist but only ONE of them ends up with him.**

 **To be 100% honest, I didn't plan exactly the way the romance will be developing. There will be hints, moments of mutual attraction and the other stuff my little brother cringes at, but overall the main pairing is undecided, safe for the potential love interests.**

* * *

 **GirugameshPanda:** Thank you very much. I myself have no beef with the trope but, you know, sometimes it just takes too long for authors to write something people already know will happen. I wanted to settle the conflict for now, at least.

 **Natsu is Awesome:** I do take pride in what I am writing, for now, at least. Unfortunately, I had to delete The Alpha because it didn't seem good enough to me. I am kind of reworking it to make sure I can write a better version in the future. In regards to the OC, I can't say she will be 100% minor character. However, I understand your concern. Not many OCs are good. And I will try to make her fit in properly without her overtaking Shigaraki's role or anything like that.

 **Karlos1234ify:** Yeah, the outburst seemed appropriate in this kind of situation. However, whether or not he starts communicating with his new "friend" any time soon. What I can promise you, though, is that there isn't going to be anything like letting Izuku use power out of respect for now. **  
**

**Mythfan:** Nice review! Thanks!

 **marconator360:** Thanks, I am happy you liked the transition. There certainly is going to be the change in Izuku. But don't expect him to go all badass right off the bat, though. It takes time)

 **treeofsakuras:** Oh, don't we all? Anyway, I have decided on two-three girls for the harem for now. Hatsune is there, but I am not sure about Momo. (Which is kind of funny because by age-bending Todoroki, I pretty much took him out of competition.)

 **E-Parasite:** That means a lot. I spent some time editing the chapter before posting it as you suggested. Makes everything really better! Thanks!

 **Saberfang Orcalodon:** Thanks! I am glad you liked it! Hot stuff? Well, soon things are going to get much hotter!

 **BBWulf:** Yeah, I know what you mean. Before mustering up enough courage to actually write something, I have spent my fair share of time as a reader. Over the time, I have got a bunch of things I like and dislike about stories. "The Internal Angsty Struggle" mixed with "What is this voice" is a combination I have seen a lot of and, to me at least, it seemed a bit overused by now as well.

 **vampireharry the 2:** Thanks! I hope this chapter will also please you! And maybe will be worth a longer review)

 **DNA2337:** I am glad you enjoy the story. To be honest, I am not sure. I might give it to him. And might not. Honestly, for now I am more for "Not" simply because this could make him way too overpowered at this stage of the story.

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Change**

* * *

If you asked a person what they would choose between pain and nothing, most if not all people would pick the latter. After all, it all makes sense to them. Between Bad and Neutral, they would always pick Neutral because it doesn't bring anything negative.

But right now Izuku would gladly accept the pain. No matter how horrible or unbearable it would be, any torture would be times better than his current state.

Robbed of his senses

Stuck in some kind of void

He was both alive and dead.

As if someone painted the entire world around him black, there was nothing he could see. No matter how much he tried to make out even the faintest of forms, all that was in his eyes was darkness.

He tried to raise his hands but neither saw them nor felt his own muscles and flesh.

He tried to scream, hoping to at least somehow prove that he is still here. But nothing came out of his mouth. He wanted to bite his lips in frustration but neither pain nor even the feeling of his own lips or teeth came.

As if his entire body was destroyed and only mind remained, Izuku could do nothing but quietly try to make sense of his position.

 _Please..._

What...

What was that?

 _Don't hurt me!_

The woman's voice became louder, followed by the scream. Slowly, the place previously so devoid of any sound was being filled with faint echoes. Thousands of voices were screaming for help...

Begging for mercy...

Praying for their lives.

 _RUN! Akito, please run!_

 _MOM!_

 _\- request backup!_

 _Please, oh God, please..._

 _Stay away from her!_

 _Get the civilians out of here now!_

Izuku wanted to close his ears, locking the sounds away. But he couldn't. And so he kept listening. The voices getting louder and louder. The cries for help turning into simple screams of pain and panic. People crying and wailing for the reasons still unknown to him.

And then...

 _... he heard the laughter._

Deafening volume of it seemingly shook Izuku's mind. His blood froze in his veins at how long and uncontrollable it sounded. No restraint or control or thought, no need for even a breath, none of that was in this long bone chilling mad cackling.

It was then that Izuku regained his other senses.

He instantly felt the cold and wet feeling all over his skin, crawling and moving all across his flesh.

He screamed in shock and fear, his own voice echoing throughout the endless nothing. The sound twisted and distorted until all he could hear was his own voice mockingly pleading for help.

And then his sight returned at long last.

Just in time to see his own mangled corpse staring right into his eyes with hollow smile, blood dripping down his cheeks as if those were tears. Izuku could do nothing but watch in silent horror as his doppelganger raised his own blood stained hand…

… and pierced his chest one second after.

"Ghaa!" Izuku shot up, his eyes wide in shock and heart bursting out of his chest. Instinctively, the green haired teen touched his chest, only to find it intact and unharmed. Still shaken by the nightmares, it took him the whole five minutes to calm down. Only then he noticed the place where he woke up. "M-My bedroom?"

The familiar posters with heroes were on the walls. All kinds of All Might merchandise neatly and carefully put to use or idly placed on the shelves around his room. Having given the place around a quick but careful look, the teen confirmed to himself that it was indeed his room.

"How did I get here...?"

What happened yesterday… It couldn't be just a dream, right?

After hesitating for a few seconds, Izuku removed the blanket in one swift motion, his eyes widening at what he saw.

Sometimes, after a particularly exhausting day, he would forget to change and spend the rest of the day up until the next morning in his school clothes. That was nothing new. Nothing that could make him believe yesterday wasn't a dream.

The stains of dirt and small tears in his gakuran and pants, however, were another thing.

Izuku tried to concentrate. The memories were not as hazy as he feared and hoped they would be. He remembered the day perfectly. Or at least, the things that were more or less important.

He got to school. Then he got into another one-sided argument with Kacchan. The said argument then escalated into something bigger than he wanted. Then a small beating down at the hands of his former childhood friend. After that…

There wasn't much he could remember.

 _I guess that last punch was much stronger than I expected._ Izuku joked to himself. That did little to diminish the growing feel of unease in his stomach. There was something he was missing… Something that was just hanging in the air right in front of him. And yet outside his reach. _After that, I woke up in that alley…_

He remembered things somewhat hazily after that. He tried to get home. But he was stopped by a pair of guys who tried to mug him. And when they learnt he had no money on himself, they proceeded to beat the living daylights out of him.

As the blurry scene from yesterday replayed itself in the teen's head, Izuku felt the headache approach as more and more details became clearer. He beat those two thugs…

He actually fought people with Quirks! That was amazing! Even now, he could recall how fast he moved! How strong he was! He actually won that fight!

He won…

… And did so as some kind of monster.

Whatever excitement Izuku felt at the idea of defeating those thugs like a hero vanished as he remembered just how exactly he fought. How he felt and acted then.

It was nothing heroic…

He didn't do this to save or help anyone but himself. And the thoughts that came to his mind… They were not something a hero would do. Not what a real hero would do. Izuku wanted to hurt those two. _Teach them some manners_ , as his mind then put it.

He wanted to make them scream and beg for forgiveness. To inflict pain just as bad if not worse than they gave him. He wanted to unleash whatever anger and frustration he had and not even think for a second about mercy.

It was only for a brief moment but…

This didn't change anything.

At that moment, when Midoriya felt this power rush through his entire body, he was nothing but a monster.

And, no matter how much he despised to admit it, there was a small part of him that liked it.

"Just what happened to me...?"

Was it his Quirk?

No, it couldn't be. His parents had absolutely different ones.

Then again, it was not uncommon for some Quirks to skip generations. Sometimes, Quirks could mutate even further, either becoming more powerful or simply deviating from the original in terms of usage potential.

It was quite possible that, somewhere along the lines, a few Quirks might have mixed into this one and…

 _Who am I kidding?_ Izuku groaned, rubbing his temples. Contrary to what many believed about him, Izuku didn't spend his time hoping for the solution to his problem magically burst through his window. _This is just impossible…_

Izuku has spent a considerable amount of time conducting his own research about Quirks. Even though he was quite traumatized by how nonchalant the doctor was when announcing his condition, Izuku listened and heeded every single word the man spoke that day.

For a long time, the Quirks were hidden completely behind the veil of mystery. And only recently did the decades long research give the answer.

The mysterious gene, which is theorized to have existed ever since the dawn of humankind, soon received its name, **_X-Metagene_**. However, the discovery of this gene was the only major progress in the research of Quirks.

It was confirmed that approximately ninety per cent of population awakened their Quirks at the age range from four to six. The late bloomers were not rare but even they never spent more than ten years without Quirks.

Why did this happen? How did that gene work? Most of the questions were yet to be answered. For what it's worth, the way this single gene altered the entire DNA of people and animals was still largely unknown.

 _Then what was that yesterday?_ Izuku thought as he absentmindedly stood up from his bed. Not even a second later, Izuku shuddered as he stepped on something cold and slimy. Lifting his foot, Izuku looked down at the thing and shuddered even more in disgust. _Is that a tuna sandwich with ice cream?_

Giving his room another - much more careful - look, Izuku practically gasped at the display before him. He rubbed his eyes, hoping that it was just some figment of imagination but…

It was, unfortunately, all very real.

The empty plastic containers (the pre-cooked meals his mom made for him), various snack wrappers (something that he kept just in case he didn't feel like eating mom's cooking) and the like were lying around as if someone had an all-night eating marathon here. A quick glance at his bed later, Izuku noticed some half-eaten food there as well. It looked as if he emptied the contents of the fridge and randomly tossed food around his room.

Good thing his parents were on a trip to the relatives in Tokyo… He would be grounded for the rest of his life if they saw what state his room was in!

"Oh..." Izuku clenched his stomach, noticing his hand was covered in a sauce or something like that. Did he seriously eat all of this yesterday? One of the reasons he never got to develop the proper muscles was because of his poor eating habits. So to think that he somehow managed to eat all of it made him wonder how sick he was go- _Oh shit... I am going to-_

Deciding to keep the internal monologue for later, Izuku rushed over to the bathroom where he quickly said goodbye to whatever his stomach kept inside. Shuddering, Izuku hurried to wash the horrible taste away. As he turned on the water, Izuku couldn't help but wince at how terrible his reflection looked. As he looked closer, the green haired noticed something very peculiar.

His clothes were a mess. Wrinkled, torn and dirtied. Mom would faint from smell alone… There was no way he could go to school like this and avoid questions from the teachers either.

And while that was important since the school started soon, Izuku just couldn't help but look at his face. With suspicious look, he proceeded to take off his gakuran jacket and then his shirt.

His eyes widened into saucers at what he saw.

 _The hell..._ Izuku, thanks to the constant reminders by those around himself, never failed to forget any of his physical shortcomings. Not only did he possess no Quirk, but he also bruised quite easily and was much skinnier than he would want to. With the beating he took yesterday, Izuku would be glad if he could walk without hurting. Naturally, he wouldn't be surprised if his body was covered in bruises and even some burn marks from Kacchan's explosions. And yet...

 _Not even a scratch?_

Not only that, but his very body changed as well.

Just yesterday… He looked like an average, and he used that term loosely, teenager who rarely engaged in physical activities.

But now he looked like he was living in a gym!

Just how was that even possible?

 _Did that black stuff do this to me?_ Izuku remembered the feeling of that slime around his flesh. Mentally, Izuku smacked himself. That was a stupid question. Of course, it was that stuff that did this to him. Unless, of course, he somehow gained the lean and toned muscles in a matter of one night by overeating. Yeah, good luck with that. Still in deep disbelief, Izuku touched his biceps and abs wondering if this was some kind of dream. They felt hard against his arms. As if they were made of some kind of stone flesh. _No... Not a dream..._

As he turned off the water, surprise and confusion still strong in his mind, Izuku accidentally tripped on his own clothes and tried to grab onto the nearest object to avoid kissing the cold and hard floor.

Unfortunately, it was the sink.

"Ouch!" He groaned, confused why he fell. While rubbing his sore face, Izuku looked up and stared in shock at the piece of sink missing. Just where did it go all of a sudden? Wait, wasn't it exactly the part of the sink he tried to grab onto... Slowly raising his hand, Izuku was shocked to see the chunk of the furniture in his hand. "What the..."

Of course, all these muscles suggested the increase in strength but to such extent... This was a bit of an overkill.

He tightened the grip before the cold piece of sink shattered into pieces.

No... Scratch that thought.

It was definitely an overkill.

 _Just what happened to me?_ He still remembered the strange feeling moments before he fell completely unconscious. As if the entire body was of his was set on fire from within. Every cell in his body dying and being pieced back together over and over again. Originally, Izuku thought - or rather hoped - that it was his Quirk. That, just like in all the comic books, this whole experience awakened his hidden powers. _If only things were that simple._

Even if such things did happen, why would it appear only now? Not that he got mugged often, but if stress was the trigger then these powers should have awakened years ago!

 _Something just doesn't feel right about it._

When he first woke up that night, he thought the whole pain was just a hallucination. Some trick his dizzy mind played on him before he fainted. But after what he did to those two guys and the nightmare he saw?

Izuku was sure it was anything but a dream.

On his nightstand the alarm clock in his room started playing "THE DAY" by _Porno Graffiti_. Still distracted by his own thoughts, Izuku was merely humming to the tune completely oblivious about what it was.

 _When I fought those guys, all my physical abilities were through the roof. If it is my power, how do I activate it?_ Was it activated by fear? Rage? Or when he was experiencing strong physical pain? Damn it, he really needed to concentrate and the sound of his alarm clock… _Wait, alarm clock?_

Damn it! He was going to be late for school! Cursing under his breath, Izuku hurried to try and put on his uniform.

But it was to no avail. In his rush to empty his stomach, he must have missed just how small his clothes were now. Izuku grumbled as he tossed his pants aside. Not that he could wear those even if they still fit though. Too many tears. Too much dirt. And it reeked of piss and dampness way too much to hide it with his dad's cologne.

 _Great... Just great! Now what am I going to?! I wish I had a spare uniform lying here..._

"Huh?" Izuku shivered, the weird feeling all over his body. As the events of yesterday replayed in his mind, Izuku could only gasp in silent horror as he recognized the feeling of cold black slime moving all across his flesh. "Oh no..."

It was back. That black mass was back! Izuku gulped, worried about what was going to happen. Would he end up going on a rampage? Become that thing again? Trash his house?

 _Mom is going to kill me…_ Izuku closed his eyes, ready to once again go through the agonizing pain he felt yesterday. And so he waited…

… only for nothing to come.

No pain or even the least of discomfort.

 _Nothing?_ That couldn't be right. Izuku opened one of his eyes carefully, still unsure of whether or not he could relax, and took a quick look at himself. To his own surprise, and pleasant one at that, the slime didn't go farther than his chin. _Wh-What?_

Also, it wasn't moving quite as chaotically as before. In fact, it was much calmer and controlled. Moving and shifting all over his skin, save for his head and hands. Instead of building itself into numerous tendrils and spikes, the black mass was slowly smoothing itself out and stretching all across his felt so light and... comfortable. Almost as though it was his second skin.

Izuku brought his arm up, watching in amazement as the slime started to harden. The process looked quite peculiar as well. It was becoming much more tangible and easier to grab but was just as soft and silky as any other fabric if not of higher quality. As the quiet sounds of the black slime moving and shifting slowly died down, Izuku rushed to the bathroom, suddenly aware of the socks and shoes on his feet.

"Wow..." Izuku couldn't hide his amazement. Except for the change in size and much fresher look, the "clothes" he was wearing right now were the perfect copy of his school uniform. But how was that even possible? Did this slime possess some shapeshifting properties? If so, how far did they go? Could he shapeshift the slime into any type of clothes? Or did the slime need to cover the article of clothing first and then recreate it? Or maybe- _Crap! I can't think about it now! I will be late!_

As Izuku locked the apartment and hurried to get to school.

In his hurry, the young man was completely oblivious to the lone figure was watching him right from across the road. His eyes narrowed in suspicion, the man cracked his neck and headed to the apartment.

* * *

Orudera Middle school…

What is the best way to describe it?

Mundane. Shabby. Mediocre at best.

Two-bit setting with no real weight to its name?

Yeah. That sounded just right.

Now, if you thought that Bakugou couldn't do better then you are wrong. There were a lot of schools he could attend. Heck, if he wanted, he could easily got a scholarship for one of those fancy ass schools for some rich pricks.

But that just wouldn't be it, you know?

Every story has a certain set of rules to it. Horros cannot be ones without suspense and the tiniest bit of hope for happy ending. Comedies always need a bit of seriousness to them just to stay more or less appealing and not end up as the fest of toilet humor.

And stories about success?

All of them must have some struggle. Who cares if some rich snob gets the high position in a company after having spent all his life in prep schools and sessions with the best tutors? This was just a given! Not interesting.

And then there was the story of real success. Of heroes rising from the simple and humble background. This is exactly how people would see him. The one who took the number one spot despite being just from an average school!

That was worth putting up with the constant mediocrity his class displayed.

Now, don't take him wrong. The class was not so bad. Frankly, all of them were just background extras who would be forgotten right after the first chapter in every story and never mentioned again. They knew their place and were the reminder why he was going to be the best. But sometimes his classmates could be just plain annoying.

And, for whatever reason, today, one such mine of gossip and talk went off.

"Hey-hey, did you watch it?"

Some video? What was it about? Most of his classmates were interested in hero-related news just like him but it didn't exclude the other options. He was sure that guy right behind him was watching another one of those stupid idol videos. Loser.

"Yeah, I can't believe it! The guy was insane right there!"

The guy? Definitely not All Might. Nobody would refer to the Number One Hero as "the guy". And since it was not All Might, then this was not important. Not to him, at least.

"What kind of hero was he fighting against anyway? Didn't look like much."

Huh, so they were talking about a villain? Bakugou scoffed under his breath. What kind of dumbasses were drooling over some villain? And these guys were aspiring to be heroes? Pathetic.

"Alright-alright, class, we are about to start so put away your phones and prepare your notebooks and books." Bakugou rolled his eyes at the mundane pre-class line Hizao-sensei said every first class. The man in his early thirties, he was often always insisting on students following guidelines and rules but never really had enough authority among the class to have them do so. That's why, unsurprisingly, around half of the people present were busy playing with their phones instead of listening to him. "Now, let's check attendance and then solve some prob-"

The teacher was interrupted by the door being slammed open and the heavily breathing student right behind it. All eyes focused on him, Izuku gulped and blushed in embarrassment.

Bakugou's mood took a very drastic drop.

"S-Sorry for being late, sensei!" He bowed in apology. A few snickers followed as his blush deepened. But that wasn't important right now. Not that important at least. "I-I, uh, I kinda got into some trouble with a police officer on the way here…"

Izuku mentally slapped himself. Why was it so hard to just say he overslept? Seriously, just say it and don't attract any more attention than necessary.

That statement, naturally, did little to divert attention from him. Izuku was well aware of his reputation among the classmates. Not just for being a "delusional Deku", but also for how much of a goody two shoes and worrywart he was. So the idea of him getting into trouble with a figure of authority was both hilarious and intriguing.

And judging by the look the teacher and the class were giving him, he wouldn't get to just go to his seat.

 _... Oh crap! I was going to NOT say anything!_ Izuku internally chided himself for not keeping his own mouth shut. _Stupid stupid stupid!_

"I, uh... I mean, I bumped into one on the way here and, you know, spilled the coffee all over him." Lying, the skill - no - the art many teenagers mastered to some degree by now, was among many things Izuku was completely and utterly a failure at. He would never become a politician. "So, I guess, that's why I came late?"

 _Why does everything I say sound more like a question than the actual statement?!_ Midoriya cursed under his breath. With a sigh, sensei was kind enough to just let him sit at his desk. Silently, Izuku thanked the teacher for the help here. As the class continued, Izuku could feel some people stare at him from behind. Some girls from behind giggled and whispered something to each other, making Izuku blush in embarrassment at what they could be talking about. What was that about? He had no idea. _I guess, I won't have to wait too long to find out though..._

As the class continued, Izuku involuntarily reached for his phone. While it may sound like a bad work ethic, but Izuku couldn't help but feel uneasy about how he hadn't checked the feed on the heroes and villains since leaving school. With his phone under the desk and one headphone carefully hidden behind his green curls, Izuku went over the news from yesterday.

Unfortunately, it seemed that there simply weren't that many exciting news.

The dynamic debut of the new hero, Mountain Lady, and her following capture of the villain, was the biggest talk among the news. Most people far more interested in her… appearance rather than her destructive entry and, what could be assumed, stealing another hero's moment.

A few speculations on Endeavour's son. Todoroki Shouto was only five years old but the media already speculated about what kind of Quirk the boy possessed. Seeing that he was the only child Endeavour himself introduced to various sources and called him "his ultimate creation", one could only guess how powerful he would grow to be.

The failed attempt at interview with Shigaraki. The Destructive Defender was one heck of a mystery to many. Everybody knows he is affiliated with All Might but nobody knows why. These two were the closest thing to the Hero Duo and yet they were as opposite as they come.

But other than that, just your daily portion of click baits and baseless rumors. As Izuku scrolled down without looking for something in particular, something interesting finally caught his eye.

 _The mysterious villain appears..._ Izuku read the headline. His heart stopped and eyes glimmered in excitement. Recently, All Might has been spotted more busy with some investigations rather than fighting villains. But he was spotted in this town! It was possible All Might got involved, right? Izuku surely hoped so. _Now let's see who was brave enough to cause trouble with All might around-_

Izuku grinned from ear to ear, ready to go into his fanboy mode once the video was ready to go.

"Ahem."

... Only to have someone cough loudly behind him. Izuku gulped, feeling the look the teacher was giving him even without looking up. At the same time, he could clearly hear some of his classmates chuckle and giggle at how he was caught.

Great.

 _Just great..._ Izuku thought bitterly as the teacher gave him one final look and, with a sigh, held out his hand. With an awkward smile, Izuku gave his phone and the teacher proceeded to continue the class. The non-verbal message was clear to Izuku, however. He wouldn't just get away with it. He was going to get a talk. _I hope he doesn't call my parents... It would be the third time this semester they got called._

And with that not so happy thought, Izuku listened to the lecture. His mind still busy with thoughts of what that video could be about.

* * *

"Hey, Midoriya, so did you get a detention?" One of his classmates asked they all entered the changing room. The period before the gym class often went like this. The male half of their class would engage in some topic and each give their feedback. It was somewhat fascinating how it was only during this time that absolutely everyone, even Izuku himself, were included in the conversation.

Well, most of the times he was included Izuku ended up on the end of butt jokes, but it still counted, right?

Right?

"N-Not exactly," Izuku mumbled nervously. Hisao-sensei was not the strictest of the teachers even though he had certain things he wouldn't allow in his class under any circumstances. "Hizao-sensei told me to come see him after class. Until then, my phone is confiscated."

"What were you watching anyway?" Another classmate asked, his lips curling into a grin. Izuku already didn't like what the guy had in mind. Shuu was not a bad guy by any means. Not as bad as some of his bullies. But he did have a dirty mind and was never one to hide it as well. "Was it porn?"

Instantly, as the numerous eyes focused on him and even more people grinned or cackled, Izuku's face blushed, the color so vivid and bright that it could make tomatoes develop complexes.

"I-It wasn't porn!" Izuku yelped, flustered and embarrassed. Why was denying this always so embarrassing? No matter how convincing you tried to be, the moment the p-word rose in the conversation, any arguments were futile. "I swear!"

As a few more laughs and some teasing comments like "Sure you didn't" and "I am not judging" were exchanged, the attention of the small group quickly returned to the topic of their conversation.

"It was the video from yesterday." Izuku mumbled, still a little bit red in the cheeks. "About that new villain."

"Oh, I watched that one too!" Another classmate said, now fully dressed in sports uniform. "Man, that thing looked wicked!"

"The thing?" Izuku asked, a bit confused. Why call villain a thing? Was he that monstrous?

"Yeah, exactly! Calling it a 'villain' just doesn't cut it, you know. 'Thing' sounds way more fitting." The same classmate grinned. Dressed in his gym uniform, the guy took some supposedly intimidating pose and started mimicking said creature. "It was all black and white, with these weird tentacles or something growing right out of its back! Oh, and it had claws and these creepy eyes on the face with no pupils!"

"A shame the footage ends on the most interesting stuff though!" One more voice joined in. This one sounding bored and disappointed. "Man, it's been a while since someone caused All Might so much trouble! Hey, you think he can actually go toe-to-toe with him?"

"Don't be ridiculous!" The guy beside him snarled. "The only reason why that monster could even land a few hits on All Might was because there were too many civilians around and the bastard had no problems using them as distraction!"

"B-But that thing didn't kill anyone, right?" Izuku asked, sounding hopeful. The thought of someone using people on the streets as some kind of meat shield disgusted him. Just what kind of monster could do that? "Or-"

"Nah, luckily, the monster escaped, if the newspapers are any proof." The person speaking readjusted his glasses. The guy's name, if Izuku remembered right, was Teruzen Suiken. He was the son of detective. "My dad says that, aside from a few bruises and cuts, nobody was really hurt. They were lucky that the damn thing was too stupid to start slaughtering everyone right away."

Izuku released breath he didn't know he was holding.

"By the way, Midoriya," the fourth person chipped in, scanning Izuku up and down. "Did you hit the gym or something? I mean, seriously, these are some muscles you got yourself!"

"Too bad those are not as impressive as mine though!" The guy with muscle-enlarging Quirk grinned proudly before making his torso swell from rock-hard muscles. Striking a pose he got a few good laughs from the people around. Izuku noted with some bitterness how nice his classmates could be when not making fun of him. If he only had a Quirk, even the weakest one, they could get along so well. "But, yeah, are you on steroids or something, ah, Midoriya? This stuff is dangerous, you know."

And the patronizing tone is back. Yay!

"N-No," Izuku smiled awkwardly. How was he supposed to explain that? How could he possible tell any of what happened and not look like he was making stuff up? After all, what could he say? What could he possible tell them and not end up sounding crazy?

 _Oh, you see, I got attacked by some weird black slime, which totally invaded my body while I was barely conscious, then I beat up two guys. But it's okay. I wanted to kill them but they are alive!_

Definitely not. Better keep silent about any of this.

But how could he dodge the question and not raise any suspicion?

 _Oh God, please help me avoid this one, please. Just help out of this situation!_

"That won't matter, you fuckmunches." The familiar voice cut in, drawing everyone's attention to its owner. Izuku blinked, wondering if deities above had some weird sense of humor. Some people scowled. Some of them smirked. Some just waited for the ash blond to say what he wanted. "It's impressive that you finally got yourself into shape, Deku, I'll give you that. But just some muscles won't get you far in the heroes' world."

That was true. Sad, but true. If you ever asked yourself why even those with weak Quirks could hope to be heroes, then the answer was quite simple. No matter how weak your Quirk is, the presence of X-Metagene altered people's DNA making them levels higher than normal, Quirkless, people.

Take Eraserhead for example. The man's Quirk was the ability to nullify Quirks of anyone he looked at. But what about all his physical feats?

While he operated mostly in secrecy, there were footages and photo materials of him moving faster than a normal man could. Lifting and overpowering opponents three or four times his weight and size! He survived bullets and explosions!

The answer to these seemingly impossible feats of stamina, speed, strength and endurance was not as simple as "lots of effort" or "peak human condition" so many comic books threw around so casually.

The X-Metagene enhanced those gifted with it.

While the majority of people believed that Quirks rarely supplemented their user's abilities in any way but their own (like giving harder bones and more durable muscle tissue to people with super strength), there were some theories that Quirk users were genetically more powerful than Quirkless people in other ways as well.

They had much more potent immune system. While they could contract the same diseases, it always required longer and more thorough exposure to the virus or bacteria. Additionally, while still under lots of doubt and speculations, people born with Quirks were reported to recover from diseases or surgeries at a much faster rate with a bigger probability of full recovery.

Quirk users, whether their Quirks were related to it or not, were generally known to possess superior physical capabilities, albeit limited to certain degree. While not all of them exhibited the level of strength or speed comparable to those of even Deathgoro or Ingenium, people with Quirks were able to take more serious damage than Quirkless.

The only exceptions to these two characteristics were cases when people's Quirks either nullified or countered the effects of the innate abilities given by the Quirks.

"Well, yeah, but what about that Knight guy?" One of the students asked sheepishly. While Bakugou had a fair share of people under his thumb, not all the students liked or tolerated him enough to put up with his shit all the time. "You know, that dark and brooding guy who recently moved in here? He has lived in USA and even got into Top 10 there!"

"Doesn't he have a Quirk though?"

"Yeah, but it is just some Memory Castle or something. So, basically, the man fights with only his own strength!"

"And a bunch of gadgets most of us can't even hope to buy."

"That doesn't matter!"

"Yes, it does!"

"Hey, you guys!" The voice from behind the door yelled in annoyance, interrupting the upcoming dispute between hero fans. "If you are done chatting, leave the classroom! Girls also need to change, you know!"

The male half of the class groaned but complied.

Nobody wanted the trouble with girls.

 ** _"You shut the fuck up!"_**

Well, nobody but Bakugou that is.

* * *

"Alright, class, let's start with some warm-up!"

Despite the booming voice of their teacher, the class did their best impression of dead man walking. Hiroshi-sensei was a very... _enthusiastic_ man. Yes, that sounded right.

Very young in comparison to the rest of the school staff, but nevertheless committed to his job, he was probably the most high-spirited person Izuku has ever known. Not to mention, he was very kind and caring towards his students as well as fair and considerate.

But there was one thing that kept him from becoming the class' favorite teacher.

"I am pretty sure 10 laps are enough to get your blood boiling!" There came a shared groaning and grumbling from the students. All happily ignored by the coach. And then he went for the finishing blow. "After this, we are going to have 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups and then 100 squats!"

 _Sensei really should lay off some manga..._ Izuku thought to himself, the rest of the class groaning. While sensei was all the things Izuku mentioned before, he was sometimes too _enthusiastic_ about his job. It seemed that, in his own mind, kids like them could pull off the insane training regimen he, questionably, came up with. And that, without Quirks!

Thankfully, the principle managed to convince Hiroshi-sensei to hire an assistant, a student from the local college, who would often make sure sensei didn't actually make them follow his training down to the letter.

"Alright, everyone, ready?" He smiled widely, either ignoring or oblivious to the despaired expressions of his students. The assistant behind him have them thumbs up, wishing them luck. "Great! then, ready..."

"I really wish he choked on that whistle..." Someone mumbled in the crowd.

"... SET..."

 _That's only wishful thinking..._ Izuku thought with a chuckle and readied to run.

 _"GO!"_

The whistle was blown. The students ran. As if it was some bad comedic gag, the entire class practically flew forward in comparison to Izuku who was left meters poured more strength into his legs, refusing to become last. Again...

Not that it helped him before though.

With internal sigh, Izuku isolated himself from the outer world, resigning to think over all the times he was given an opportunity to prove that he was his classmates' equal. To show that even without Quirk he could be just as fast or strong as they were.

But failing to do so every single time. Every single run. Every single game. Every single time he could try to show he wasn't worthless. All of them just proved him otherwise. He never crossed the line before the other ten people or so. He always was picked the last and whatever team took him looked like they were already doomed to lose.

So it shouldn't come as a surprise that he was-

"Midoriya!"

"Woah!" Izuku snapped back to reality, stopping dead in his tracks. Shaking his head, Izuku looked at the coach with confused expression. Why was he grinning like he has just won a lottery? And why was his assistant looking like he has just grown a second head? Slowly, Izuku looked around taking in the similar shocked or disbelieving expressions of his classmates.

God, what did he do this time?

"H-Hiroshi-sensei, is everything alright?"Izuku asked unsure, already trying to sneakily check if he had a tear in his clothes anywhere. Gosh, this was embarrassing. Why was everyone staring at him?

"Why?! Take a look for yourself, kiddo!" The coach asked in his usual fired-up manner. Immediately he grabbed the poor shaking teen by his shoulders and turned him around. Izuku's eyes widened as he looked at the half of the class, still running around in circles. And the rest were right near him, lying or sitting on the ground, apparently out of breath. "You have just outrun your entire class! And you didn't even break a sweat!"

"I-I did?" It was a question. Or at least sounded like one. Confusion and disbelief were written all over Izuku's face as he quickly pinched himself. That wasn't a dream. But then how was it even possible? Wait, if he finished with the first half of the class then did that mean that he outran _him_ as well? Izuku gulped, eyes nervously shifting to the side.

A few meters away from him stood none other than Kacchan, panting just like everyone else, albeit not looking even half as exhausted as the others. The ash blond was staring at the ground under his feet, the sweat drops falling against the hard around the Explosion user could tell that something was bothering him. Making his blood boil.

Izuku took one step back, preparing himself for his former childhood friend to lose his cool and attack him any minute now.

"Alright now, enough with praise, let's get back to the exercises!" Hiroshi-sensei grinned, oblivious to the death glare Bakugou was sending in Midoriya's direction. Izuku gulped, fully aware of how easy it was for Kacchan to up and attack him right now, even with the teacher around. Heck, Hiroshi-sensei would probably think that this was some kind of training too! "And remember, guys, don't put too much pressure on yourselves. We don't want any injuries, am I right?"

Izuku could only envy the obliviousness of the man. God, he could use some of it right now.

* * *

Aizawa Shouta was many things. He was a pro hero, a teacher at one of the most prestigious schools in Japan. Also, he was not a bad cook. His talent with cooking meals felt particularly odd with how often the man was seen consuming whatever junk he called food.

"Not that your presence here is unwelcome," Shigaraki chuckled at the blatant lie and took another spoonful of the hot beef stew. Shit, Aizawa should really consider opening a restaurant of his own once he retires. Seriously, he would be a loyal patron. "Is there a reason why you came here beaten half to death?"

Contrary to what many people believed, Shigaraki actually liked Eraserhead. He was probably the only one in this situation he could actually trust with the information he found.

"I am sure you have heard of that little base me, All Might and the Flame-Ass found?" Aizawa frowned at the lack of respect he showed to another hero but still nodded. "Thing is, my memory is still kind of fuzzy after that thing attacked us. So I decided to go out and try to use some of my contacts-"

"I am quite sure the last time you did that I had to save your sorry ass from a bunch of gangs."

"-And what do you know," Shigaraki completely ignored Aizawa's comment and kept going on with his story. "No sooner I leave the bar, turns out All Might is getting his ass handed to him by that mysterious monster, all skin black and slimy… Just like the substance we encountered earlier that day."

There were a lot of other explanations. After all, how many villains dressed up in black or possessed some sort of shapeshifting upon activation of a Quirk? However, Aizawa kept silent. For all his antics and occasional displays of asocial tendencies, Shigaraki was rarely wrong when it came to seeing things for what they were.

Especially, when it was even remotely related to _him_.

"So I tried to track that thing down but someone messed with my channels. I didn't even get to pay the bill in that Internet café when some asshat came in and tried to stab me with a syringe." Shigaraki groaned as if he talked about someone spilling coffee on his shirt. Still, it was obvious that the story didn't end here. "I am not sure how but before I knew it, this guy and I end up on the roof with our gloves taken off. Literally, in my case."

He chuckled at his own joke, remembering the emotionless mask the man wore. Sheesh, today all the assassins seemed to get addicted to some futuristic or Matrix style clothes. And the guy was no different. Dressed in full body armor of grey and black metal, his face hidden behind the black screen.

"We fought. The guy was a speedster. I took a good chunk of his armor but he decided to play the classic escape route by throwing a few bombs onto the streets. Bu the time I was done getting rid of them, the punk was gone. But he left this."

Shigaraki tossed a small white card, no words or anything on it one single picture.

"A spider, huh?" Aizawa's eyes sharpened at the familiar image. "Is it connected to-?"

"The break-in a few weeks ago? I am certain of that. Let's be honest, the crook we caught didn't have enough brain cells to infiltrate a public toilet let alone Yuuei." Most of the faculty shrugged the issue off due to the crook's ability to become a cloud of oxygen. But Shigaraki knew better. Someone had to give this guy an idea. "It was a distraction. But for what?"

"And how is that connected to the black monster All Might fought," Aizawa took the words out of his mouth. There always was a possibility of the man being just a hired help. But then the question would be who hired him. And why? "And you are telling me this because…"

"Frankly, you are the most trustful person I know." Shigaraki didn't lie. He still looked up to All Might. He still saw All Might as a hero and trusted him. And that was exactly why he knew he couldn't rely on him. "We both know that All Might would rush in and start searching for the culprit first. He would catch him, no doubt. But right now he is far more focused on finding the worthy successor as well as going through constant medical procedures to keep his strength at the level."

Not to mention how much the very mention of All For One affected All Might.

"I want your help. We need to find how these people are connected and what they really are planning. The Entrance Exam is quite the event in its own right, after all. What's the better chance to attack?"

Entrance Exam in Yuuei… Just like the numerous others, Yuuei was showing the practical part on several Internet channels. Some people would call it cheap PR but the faculty and heroes understood what the purpose of it was.

To send the message.

To civilians and villains alike, the message would be clear. They would see the young men and women, just teenagers, at their weakest. No training or guidance behind their raw power. And then they all would feel it.

The potential of the future heroes.

And if something were to go wrong…

"I will ask Power Loader to check all the equipment beforehand. Cementos too."

"Thanks, Aizawa-san."

The rest of the night was spent in silence, both men each wondering just what the future prepared for all of them.

"Ah, Midoriya-kun, come in, take a seat." Hisao said, his smile welcoming and voice calm. It was not rare for him to catch students playing around with their phones during his lessons. Seriously, kids these days… With things as they are, soon they would know about their phones more than about their own homes.

But seeing one of his best students do this was another matter. Midoriya was a very gifted young man. If he only applied himself more, without doubt he would be the top of the class.

Hisao knew well of the bullying the kid was subjected to. And he did whatever he could to try and prevent it from happening. Sadly, there was only that much a few detentions and discussions on the issue could do.

Despite the support as a teacher, however, Hisao did want Midoriya to give up on his childhood dream. He didn't think that there was any merit to it. Midoriya was gifted in his own right. Not with some Quirk but instead blessed with great intelligence.

It was a shame that someone, as academically gifted as Midoriya-kun, was so focused on pursuing the impossible. While Hisao never dismissed heroes as unnecessary and even respected them for all the work they did on daily basis, he just couldn't see how heroics was a better career choice. Not for someone who had the potential like Midoriya's.

"I-I am sorry for dozing off in your class, Hisao-sensei!" Izuku stammered out an apology, almost slamming his head against the teacher's desk. The teacher coughed into his fist, trying to mask the brief chuckle that escaped his mouth. "I-I swear, I won't do that again!"

"Midoriya-kun, calm down. You are not in trouble." Hisao proceeded to calm the nervous teen down. It was both funny and sad how nervous the teen in front of him could be. And just how genuine he was in his apology. A rare case when a student felt guilty about using his phone in his class. "However, there is something I have been meaning to talk to you for a long time by now."

He could hear the teen gulp nervously. Was he afraid of some kind of punishment? Hisao sighed, ready to dismiss all the worry and give Midoriya the help he himself didn't know he needed.

"You have straight A's in all your classes. You work diligently and hard on every project you are given." Hisao said, his voice praising and flattering even. Izuku smiled awkwardly and started mumbling about how he wasn't that great and how it was just him trying his best. The teacher could only nod at that. Modesty was another one of his positive traits. "I dare to say, you are probably one of the most academically gifted students in your year. And, some social awkwardness aside, you have a very good heart, Midoriya-kun."

"I-I... Thank you, sensei. B-But I don't think that I am that smart." Izuku waved his hand, sounding even more nervous than before. "I-It's not like my test scores are that high."

"Yes, that's true. But only because you don't try hard enough. You lack commitment, Midoriya." Hisao said, his voice finally growing more serious. With a smile, Hisao reached inside the drawer and pulled out a brochure his friend gave him. With a smile, he presented it to Midoriya. "But, quite possibly, you just have your eyes on the wrong objective."

"W-What is it?" The green haired teen asked, taking the small pamphlet. He could see the confusion in his student's eyes. They grew only wider with surprise. The young man blinked and rubbed his eyes, trying to see if what he was given wasn't just some dream. "The Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters?"

In the first days of Quirk Age, there was great deal of conflict between the "normal" people and those gifted/cursed with the superpowers. Many of the people, whose powers awakened, were shunned and hated by the society, scared for their own safety and lives.

Among the first Quirk users, there was a man born in the USA, named Charles Xavier, who founded the educational establishment for children who wanted to learn how to control their Quirks and avoid harming people. While that could count as one of the first schools for superheroes, the main objective was more of teaching people with powers to live in society together with the Quirkless rather than making them into crime fighters.

And now, decades after the foundation, this school became one of the most well-known establishments for its successful graduates with vast role in the building of the world as it is today. To even attend this academy... This could make a person's life. Open the doors for so many opportunities.

And now Izuku Midoriya was offered a chance to enter this school.

"Yes, Midoriya." The teacher smiled, seeing that he managed to get the teen's attention. "A friend of mine works there. You remember that test I had you write a few days ago?"

Izuku nodded. He was caught again. That time he was writing in his notebook during the class and Hisao-sensei offered him to write some test instead of sitting in detention. Naturally, he took it and didn't think about it after.

"Your results were quite impressive, Midoriya. Along with the recommendations and comments on your great work ethic from the other teachers, this was more than enough to convince my friend suggest your candidature for scholarship program." The teacher said with pride and praise. "Midoriya-kun, listen. You are really talented. Gifted even. But none of that shows or matters because you are not using it! With that brain of yours, you could go places! You could become anyone you want. But..."

"I want to become a professional hero." Midoriya finished for him. Hisao sighed and nodded in confirmation. Yes, that was what he wanted to talk about. As a teacher, he considered it his sacred duty to make sure that each and every students under him could achieve their potential. See what they were the best at and build their lives around it. And to see Midoriya, someone with the potential to be so much more than just a hero, bury it all down because of unfeasible dream was just unbearable. "Y-You want me to…"

"Yes, Midoriya. That's exactly what I think you should do." It was clear as day Midoriya knew what he was talking about. "There are other ways to save lives, Midoriya. If not as a hero, then you could be a doctor. The possibilities are-"

"H-Hisao-sensei...! I am sorry but... I don't think that I am going to change my decision to apply for Yuuei. Or any other school that teaches heroics at that." Midoriya said with all the confidence and determination that a young man could possible show. "Being a hero... It has always been my dream. And I have no intention of giving up on it."

With that, Izuku took his phone and, with a words of gratitude, headed to the exit door. Before he could leave, however, Hisao decided to ask the teen one final question:

"But will it be worth it?"

The teen just stood at the exit, his back turned to the teacher. The atmosphere became heavy as Izuku just stood there, his face unseen and emotions unreadable. With a barely audible "goodbye, sensei", Midoriya left the cabinet, slamming the door behind himself.

* * *

 _But will it be worth it?_

Izuku sighed at the words still echoing in his head. In his hand, he still held the brochure about the school. It was overseas, so he would have to leave everything behind. His friends (however small their number was), his parents, the dream of attending Yuuei...

He didn't want it.

But did he have any right to refuse?

"I am sure mom and dad would cry from happiness if I told them about this..."

Being accepted into a famous school on a scholarship is the kind of opportunity parents would kill for their children to have. Especially, his parents.

It was no secret to Izuku that, while kind and loving, his parents neither had much faith in his dreams nor wanted him to pursue them. Some people could say it is wrong and not something good parents should do. But then again, who could blame them?

Izuku was not an idiot. Idealist and dreamer? Maybe. But certainly not an idiot.

He understood well why his parents wanted him to choose another, a safer, career. Not only did he lack even the weakest Quirk, but his health condition was far from perfect even among the Quirkless people. What kind of parent would encourage their child to pursue something as dangerous as a life of hero?

 _But I have all this power now!_ Izuku voiced protest against himself. He was no longer weak, right? He was faster and stronger! Heck, he could do all this crazy stuff during the gym class and maybe even more! He didn't need to give up on his dream anymore... Right?

"I really need to clear my head." Izuku muttered as he reached for the doorknob. Only for the door to open without him even putting in the key. This… Was a bad sign. _I have seen enough horror movies to know where this is going._

As if it sensed his anxiety, the black slime formed on his hand, fingers turning into claws and his second skin hardening around his flesh At least he wouldn't go unarmed. This was the first mistake all characters in horror movies did.

Seriously, somebody broke into your house and you don't even think about grabbing some weapon?

"Hello?" Izuku called out to whoever heard him. His clawed hand was at ready, his eyes slowly adjusting to the dark. Huh, come to think of it, it was kind of weird how fast his eyes managed to make out things without any light. Was it another one of the perks he got from that black thi- "Ghaaa!"

His thoughts were interrupted when a pair of hands grabbed Izuku by the collar before slamming him against the wall. Uh, so much for being genre savvy.

"No more Nice Guy for you, guy!" Izuku would raise an eyebrow if his throat wasn't being crushed. In the dark, he could barely see what the man looked like exactly. He was definitely big, had much more muscles than anyone Izuku knew (except for All Might and Deathgoro), and wore some kind of knuckles if the cold metal against his neck was any indication. Who was the Nice Guy again? "Where the hell are the drugs?"

Yup, definitely insane.

"I don't know what you are talking about! I swear to God!"

"Swear to me!" For some reason, while flying all across his living room, Izuku felt like they were walking on the edge of copyright infringement. "I know what I saw! Now give me the drugs!"

"I said…" Izuku groaned, feeling his control over the substance lessen. The black slime quickly came alive, losing its form as his school clothes and turning into the living weapon cloak. "I have no idea what you are talking about!"

On a side note, he really needed to come up with a better name instead of "substance" or "slime".

"Uh-ha!" The man roared in triumph, pointing his finger at him almost accusingly. "And here you show your true colors, villain!"

Alright now that was insulting.

"You are not making any sense!" He wasn't a villain! He wanted to be a hero dammit! "I don't have any drugs!"

"You won't fool me!"

He wasn't trying to fool anyone either!

"Just calm down!" Izuku wanted to raise his hand in a gesture of surrender. What he wanted, however, was clearly different from what his suit wanted. Because, as soon as he moved his hand between the man and himself, the black tendrils shot out and wrapped itself around the man's torso before starting to crush him with sheer force. "W-Wait…"

Izuku tried to get his hand under control, channeling whatever focus he had on this one task: Prevent himself from crushing the man. For a few moments, it looked like there was not even a whisper of chance but soon the grasp on the intruder weakened and he fell on the floor, breathing heavily.

Izuku grinned victoriously, happy that he got the situation under control. But it didn't last long and soon Izuku found himself on the ground, his legs and arms weak and his breath broken. Feeling the confused look on himself, Izuku looked up at the man and smiled:

"I… I am sorry…" He honestly was. He panicked and lost control. He could have killed this man just because he tried to use this power. Why? Not because he wanted to be safe. No, it was a lie he told himself. The lie he used to justify not calling the police. In truth, he wanted to prove himself he could be a hero. "I am sorry."

Several awkward minutes of silence followed before Izuku felt himself being lifted up by his hands.

"My name is Knuckleduster." The man introduced himself, his features becoming more clear. His unshaved chin, the mask covering half of his face, the scar, and those sharp white eyes. "I think we both have something we need to talk about."

Izuku nodded tiredly, completely oblivious to how much his life was going to be changed by this simple talk.

* * *

 **And here's my wrap!**

 **Honestly, the original chapter was even longer and included way more things about my version of BNHA universe. Things like Trigger's effect here, several more pieces of Bakugou's POV and introduction of other characters but, oh well, more material for the next chapter, right?**

 **Anyway, about the Fanons/Universe Remix in this BNHA-verse:**

 **1) X-Metagene: My crude amalgamation of X-Gene (MARVEL) and Metagene (DC). As you read, in this universe, the very presence of this gene already makes one genetically more powerful than normal, Quirkless, people. That was my attempt at explaining why Aizawa can perform feats of speed and strength he did, why Izuku survives and shruggs off the explosion and etc. This idea was born from my discussion with the friend of mine about how actually insignificant some Quirks are.**

 **Think about it. All due respect to Ojiro, but his Quirk is an extra appendage. And that's it. Sure, he uses it quite well and all but, if a Quirkless guy got a rope or whip or something like that, the same level of mastery could be achieved. So, in Canon, it is not exactly specified why Quirkless people are automatically considered unfit for heroics.**

 **2) The Entrance Exam: Basically, I wanted to change it a bit and have the entire physical part of the exam be shown on the Internet. Why? Well, you have to find out. Some of you may think that it takes away the element of display from Yuuei Festival but I already got it covered so don't worry.**

 **3) The Quirk changes. I am not a big fan of the idea that Quirks are either the mixture of parental Quirks or the carbon copy of one of the parents' Quirks. In this universe, Quirks tend to deviate and change, with differing probabilities. They can be practically identical to the parental ones. Or they can be similar only by the very basics of it.**

* * *

 **On a side note, I am going to need FIVE OCs for the future arc.**

 **Now, I could make them myself. But I really like reading people's ideas and often the times people create such amazing characters which I would never think of.**

Full Name: Last Name - First Name

Alias:

Age: 15-17 (All the OCs submitted must be in their second year in Yuuei)

Gender:

Appearance:

Personality:

Quirk:

Abilities:

 **As you can see, all the OCs are already second years in Yuuei. Meaning that they have come pretty far and, naturally, are very strong. On the other hand, please do try to be original with their Quirks and personalities. The more original these OCs are, the higher the chances of them being accepted!**

* * *

 **So, that's all for today, guys! I really hope you enjoyed the chapter and am looking forward to reading your reviews. Currently, I am working on my making my work worthy of certain kind of attention and really wish you could share your feedback with me.**


	4. Author's Note

**Hello, guys!**

 **Sorry for no posting another chapter.**

 **I, unfortunately, can no longer write this story since I just lost any and all inspiration to continue.**

 **However, I did find another writer to continue this story, so I hope you will all treat the adopted fic he makes with as much love as you expcted mine.**

 **Just so you know, I took some time to talk to the other writers and see if they could continue what I started, and I think I picked a pretty good candidate.**

 **We exchanged a few ideas here and there, so I can assure you, nothing would change much.**

 **Anyways, I hope _Saint Danielle_ will make the story worth your while. **

**Bye guys, and I am sorry.**


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